MacBook M3 Pro Max freezing after macOS Sequoia 15.2 update

I can now say that my issue is related to Universal Control, and that the system is not really freezing, but it loses its WIFI connection, and most of the time, all input devices and/or the USB bus. It appears to freeze, but responds do the TouchId button and I can login/logout with it.

I am almost 100% certain that this is a software (OS) issue and not a hardware issue.

I started tailing all logs in order to see what is taking place around the time of the issue, and this is what I typically see:

/var/log/wifi.log:

Wed Feb 19 09:36:47.055 [airport] @[683805.308694] (airportProcessCommand.m:1667) Processed events, count[ 19], @[683805.305560], took 0.003121
Wed Feb 19 09:36:47.058 [airport] @[683805.310890] (airportProcessCommand.m:1381) Processing event, count[  0]
Wed Feb 19 09:36:47.071 [airport] @[683805.324493] (airportProcessCommand.m:1667) Processed events, count[  0], @[683805.310877], took 0.013594
Wed Feb 19 09:37:09.462 Usb Host Notification hostNotificationUSBDeviceRemoved USB2.0 Hub seqNum 3016 Total 1
Wed Feb 19 09:37:09.463 Usb Host Notification hostNotificationUSBDeviceRemoved Matias Keyboard seqNum 3016 Total 0
Wed Feb 19 09:37:09.475 Usb Host Notification Apple80211Set: seqNum 3016 Total 0 chg 0 en0At first I was looking at 

At first I was thinking USB was the issue, and blaming my Keyboard and/or cable. I replaced the cable, and eventually got a wireless Apple keyboard yet the issue remained. After some time I noticed that it is specifically the "Processed events, count[ 19]" line, and specifically the count being 19, and that the surrounding USB events win the wifi log are most likely also affected by what ever this issue is.

My setup was to use my personal 2024 M4-Max MBP to control my work M3 MBP. Since losing control of work MBP is disruptive, I connected the wireless keyboard and mouse to it, and started using Universal Control in the other direction, controlling my personal MBP.

Can you guess what happened? The work MBP started freezing up the same way my personal one had been. The "Processed events, count[ 19]" line started showing up in its logs as well, and no longer appeared in the logs of my personal MBP.

I have opened a Feedback Assistant issue with Apple, and will try to jump through all the Apple support hoops to get this to someone who can actually look into it.

Hope this helps someone else.

Same thing here: occasional freezes for a few seconds or longer. Happens since updating to sequoia 15.3.2. Very frustrating issue, especially since its seems so random. Sometimes affect weird thins like the backspace not working or a window not being highlighted after clicking on it.

Thank you to whoever responded with the below message! Ok I'll reply to what or what I have NOT done with the solutions below that I was given. FYI, I am currently on my M4 MacMini (bought December 2024 w/ Sequoia already installed) and I MIGRATED entire backup from my 2022 M1 MacStudio's Monterey Time Machine backup and the M4 MacMini works PERFECTLY under Sequoia with no issues so far.

The 2021 M1 MacBook Air (that I've been having issues with) originally came with Big Sur and I upgraded it to Monterey as I did NOT like the changes/looks/functionality of Ventura/Sonoma when I upgraded my 2020 M1 MacMini and 2023 M2 MacMini (both of which I did NOT migrate from my previous backups, as I use these for my "test Macs"), but I have since grown fond of Sonoma and Sequoia (aside from the Preview app's bugs!!!), so that is why I am finally upgrading my M1 MBA.

The M1 MBA (that I am having issues with) was having issues crashes on OS Monterey (certain apps would not open and freeze the Mac), so I did do an UPGRADE to Sequoia and the crashed kept having so, I decided to do a fresh install which took DAYS installing DMG's for all my apps; I'm in music production so, installing Logic AND it's Libraries took a day all on its own! Since BOTH my M1 MBA and M1 MacStudio used the same Mojave migrated backup (it is a newer-ish backup which was freshly installed in 2020) and both of those didnt have too many issues, I can still migrate from that old backup to see if it'll make a difference, but I wonder if my M1 MBA is going faulty? I mean, we don't know how these M1/M2/M3/M4 Macs are going last after a few years. I HOPE that I don't have a dying Mac!

In any case, below is what Apple sent me to do, and I'll reply IN BOLD CAPS:

1. NVRAM and SMC Reboot and Reset

• Restart your Mac: Simple but often effective. :::: DID IT! DIDN'T WORK!!!!::::::

• Reset NVRAM: Turn off your Mac, then turn it on and hold down Option + Command + P + R for about 20 seconds. :::: DID IT! DIDN'T WORK!!!!::::::<<< THIS JUST RESTARTED THE MAC INTO RECOVERY MODE! NOT SURE IF THIS IS THE RIGHT PROCEDURE?

• Reset SMC: If you have performance issues, you may want to try resetting the System Management Controller (SMC). On your Mac with an Apple Silicon (M3 Pro Max) chip, just turn it off and wait 30 seconds before turning it back on.

2. Check for Software Updates

• Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and check for updates. Apple may have already released a patch.:::: DID IT! NOT YET!!!!::::::

3. Start in Safe Mode

• Turn off your Mac, then turn it on by holding down Shift until the login screen appears.

• This helps to isolate software problems, disabling third-party extensions and emptying some caches. :::: I HAVE NOT YET, BUT WILL!!!::::::

4. Check the Disk and RAM

• Open Disk Utility and run "First Aid" on the disk to see if there are any errors.:::: I HAVE NOT YET, BUT WILL!!!::::::

• Open Activity Monitor (from Spotlight) and check CPU and memory usage. If you see abnormal processes, they could be the cause of the blocks. :::: I HAVE NOT YET, BUT WILL!!!::::::

5. Problems with Finder and Safari

• If Finder crashes frequently, try deleting the preferences file using this line in the Terminal:

~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.plist. :::: I HAVE NOT YET, BUT WILL!!!::::::

Then restart your Mac.

• For Safari, clear the cache:

• Open Safari, go to Safari > Settings > Advanced and enable the Developer menu.

• Then go to Development > Clear cache. :::: I HAVE NOT YET, BUT WILL!!!::::::

6. Create a New User

• Go to System Settings > Users & Groups and create a new user. Log in with that and see if the problem persists. If it works well, the problem may be related to your main profile files. :::: I HAVE NOT YET, BUT WILL!!!::::::

7. Restore macOS Sequoia

If nothing works and the problem is unbearable, you might consider a clean installation of macOS.

1. Back up with Time Machine.

2. Restart in Recovery Mode (+R on startup).

3. Select "Reinstall macOS" and follow the instructions. :::: ALREADY DID and am WORKING FROM A FRESH INSTALL !!!::::::

8. Report the Bug to Apple

• Open Feedback Assistant (already installed on macOS) and report issues to Apple.

• You can also visit the official Apple Feedback site to submit reports. :::: DID IT! MANY TIMES!!!!:::::

If the issue is caused by a bug in macOS 15.2, a future update may fix it. In the meantime, try these solutions and let me know if anything helps!

Finder continually freezes with a brand new Macbook Pro 2024 M4 with tons of RAM (On two brand new MacBook M4 Pros). This never happened on my 2015 Macbook Pro... With Monterey. It happens with Sequoia. The issue is in Sequoia. It's not a "RAM" problem.

The freeze often (if not always) occurs when using Brave Browser. There is something within the operating system that is causing the freeze. When I close Brave Browser, Finder comes back to life most of the time, otherwise I have to do a restart. This problem occurs from a brand new computer with a clean installation of the O.S.

The freeze has also occurred when using icloud.

It's annoying and should not be happening.

This is exactly what I am seeing, although for me, what I notice immediately is Universal Control getting disconnected from my other laptop . I am not sure if it matters, but I have 128gb of RAM.

Are you using Universal Control?

Are you using Universal Control?